Shiny
by random-user-person
Summary: Everyone thinks Shiny Pokemon are rare, awesome, and special, right? Well, they are rare and special, but the Pokemon of the world think that Shiny Pokemon are those who should be outcasted or praised, there is no normal for them. This is the story of one certain Shiny Zorua who learns to be who she is no matter her color.
1. Chapter 1

I crouched in the bushes watching the other kids playing, they all looked like they were having so much fun. I sat there wagging my bushy brown tail back and forth and back and forth. It hurt to do so. Occasionally, I would wrap my tail to the front of my body to take a look at it. I pawed at it gently, it made the pain worse. I felt a bump as a ran my paws down it, something was broken I guessed. I whimpered as I settled to the ground. There were bruises all along my body that ached as I put too much pressure on them.

I put my nose down to my paws. I could still see the play ground and the other Pokemon playing through the cover of leaves. I felt tears well up in my eyes. "Why me, why do I have to be the weird one?" I asked to myself out loud.

I heard leaves rustling to my right. I sprang up ready for action. Sharp pain ran through my body when I did from my injuries. I growled lowly and lowered myself to show the new comer I was not afraid to fight. Mr. Gardevoir walked through the leaves. I returned to my normal upright position when I realized who it was. He walked over to me gracefully and sat down. I plopped back down and looked at him trying to figure out what to say. I really did not want to talk to my teacher, it was already bad enough that the other kids in my grade beat me up every day. He always tried to help but he couldn't ever do much.

I watched him as he looked ahead. We sat there in silence until he finally broke it, "You know, I had the same problems that you did. I was different. They would all say 'Kirlias can't be guys, it's not natural!'" he said. He looked down at me as if waiting for a response.

I opened my mouth to speak, but he continued, "I tried to change it since people thought me a freak. I looked high and low for a dawn stone, my parents and best friends did too. I didn't want to end up a Gardevoir back then, I wanted to be a strong and fierce Gallade." he swung his fist in front of him as emphasis. "There are some things that fate won't let us have though. I became a Gardevoir, and I hated it at first."

"What does this have to do with me though?" I asked, my problem was different than evolution, mine was genetic. "I can't dye my fur so it's normally colored, I was born Shiny and I can't help it. The dye fades easily, I know, I've tried!"

"I know that, but you know what you can do? You can be proud of it, you're different than everyone else. You're part of an elite club of differently colored Pokemon, there are so few of you. My story didn't end with hating being a Gardevoir, I learned to love and embrace it. Gardevoirs used to fight along side human wizards when they still existed, something a Gallade would not live to survive with its typing. I realized I could help kids who had my problem, that's why I became a teacher. I can help so that kids aren't bullied like I was, to be proud of what they are." He stood up and held his and down to me, "Recess is almost over, let's head back towards the school."

I looked up at him for a few seconds, then agreed to follow him. I limped along, but held my head high. _'I know I've heard that whole little talk before, but it still makes me feel a little better. So what if I'm not a normal Zorua, I'm weird and special.'_ I was feeling better about myself until I reached the playground. The kids started looking at me weird again and giggling when I walked by them. I could hear every word they said.

"Don't go too close, you could catch Shiny."

"She should just use her illusion ability to change her ugly appearance."

"She is such a freak!"

Mr. Gardevoir looked down at me, "Don't let them get to you."

I looked ahead at the school, it was pretty much a hole in the side of a hollowed out hill. The door was just a hole to get in, but was protected by the local Diglett and Dugtrio.

Mr. Gardevoir called for everyone to head inside so that lessons could start again.

Before I returned to class, Mr. Gardevoir had me go to Blissy, the school nurse. She wrapped my leg and tail and put some other bandages on me. She told my my tail wasn't broken, just badly bruised. She told me to put some ice on it tonight if the swelling didn't go down.

As I walked down the hallway to class, I realized that I was starting to feel better, I didn't have to limp anymore. I got to my class room and nudged the door open with my nose. It was never closed so that Pokemon without hands could get in. The class went silent and looked at me, immediately whispers went around. To me, their whispering was louder than a Loudred's cry.

Mr. Gardevoir said, "Everyone be quiet, have you never seen a Pokemon walk into a class room?" He then continued writing on the chalkboard; I could tell we were learning about evolution history based on his drawings.

I walked over to my desk only to see it was painted with crude blue and brown paint. I knew what it was immediately and started to cry. The class erupted with laughter.

"Look, the Shiny has a desk to match now!"

"She's no longer the only freak."

That was the breaking point. I had been bullied so long and I couldn't take it anymore. I ran out of the classroom and to the bathroom. I leaped up on the counter and started at myself in the mirror. My brown and blue flop of fur on top of my head seemed to droop with my mood. I curled up on the counter and cried. I laid there for a few minutes until I came up with an idea. _'I could just run away.'_ I realized.

I looked around the bathroom for the window that provided light. I found it and ran opposite to it. I used quick attack to gain the necessary speed in such a small area then leaped up to the window sill. It was about eight feet off the ground, but I made it using my attack. I smashed the window using tackle and leaped down to the other side. I landed in a puddle of water. It was a hard landing, but the mud at the bottom helped it a little. I looked down at my reflection in the puddle My fur still drooped, but I moved it back in place. Some odd furs covered the two blue dots above my eyes, so I pushed them back.

I held my chin up and started strutting away. _'Maybe I should go see my mom before I leave. She would want to know where I went.'_ I contemplated that option for a second or two, but decided against it. My mom would get so worried and wouldn't ever let me leave. She would probably do all it takes to keep me from leaving, including using illusion and other trick tactics our evolution line had.

I heard a door open to my left and snapped my head to see what it was. It was Mr. Gardevoir and the principal, Mrs. Nidoqueen. They had probably heard me break the window. I used illusion to turn my appearance into a Caterpie. I was weak with my illusions, so I could only turn into Pokemon that are smaller than me.

I crawled along like that until I got to the boundary of our town's territory. It wasn't far from the school since we sometimes go to the edge to see some human tourists who visit the area, they seemed to love us little Pokemon the most. Some of the humans called rangers will give us food and toys kind of as a reward for being a tourist attraction.

I stopped at the boundary and looked out at the open grass land ahead. I turned back into my original form and took a deep breath. I placed one foot outside the border, then gradually pulled the rest of my body over it. I took one more look at the home I was leaving behind, I could see the very top of the hill in the town. It's the one dotted with almost everyone's homes, mine included. I already felt heart sick, so I looked away.

_'No one there liked me, my own mom and dad even asked if my colors could be changed.'_ I kept walking forwards remembering my life in the village. _'The first time I got beat up was my first day of school. The kids thought me a freak. Even at the local shrines, the ones there would call me a demon.'_ I was about a quarter of the way across the field. _'Nobody there liked me.'_ I stopped walking for a little bit and stood there. Tears were beginning to form, but I wouldn't let them spill.

_'No, that life is behind me, I'm free from other's opinions about Shines. I'll live up to their rumors about in my new life, a freak of a different color. An awful beast sent from the depths of the Distortion World. I'll show whoever dares make fun of me what I can really do.'_ I began to run the rest of the way across the field until I was in the forest beyond, a place where I could start my new life.


	2. Chapter 2

Five days. That's how long it has been since I was home. I've started to understand survival methods, but they never taught us this kind of stuff in school. _'Man, I wish I had joined Poke Scouts when I was littler. They could've taught me survival skills.' _

I was sitting in the shade, it was the middle of the day, and even in the forest it was boiling hot outside. "It's not supposed to be this hot in spring." I mumbled. I settled down to my belly and tucked my nose into my paws. I looked out into the clearing in front of me. Fire Pokemon were laying in the sun and playing around with each other. It was fun to watch.

I decided to get up and walk to the river that I found nearby. It's just down the hill from the clearing, and further down the river is where I made my current home. The forest here is nice, but Pokemon don't really talk with each other, it seems like it's everyone for themselves out here.

I reached the stream and leaned down the lap up some water. I saw a family of Buizel playing in the stream near me. They were splashing around. One of the older kids splashed a younger one. They began to chase each other around and have a water battle. I laughed at the adorable scene, they were around my age so I decided to go over to them to try and talk to them. That's when the mom looked up at me.

She started to growl at me, "Stay away, all of you dark types only bring harm no matter how innocent you look."

I back peddled a few steps, "No, I-I-I just thought I could be friends, I'm really lonely. I ran away from my home."

"Likely story, where's your mom, is she hiding as a fish in the stream? Come on kids, let's go." She got behind the rest of her family and shuffled them towards the stream. They dove in and swam away. As the mom passed, she flipped her tail upwards and soaked me in water.

_'Well, at least the water is helping with the heat.'_ I thought. I sat at the edge of the stream and looked down at my reflection. I watched my sad reflection for awhile. I began to cry and the tears began to mess with the image by creating small waves. I decided that it wasn't worth crying over after a little bit, so I went back to the cave I called my home.

It wasn't much, but it was good enough for now. I was really just resting for a few days until I decided to keep moving. It was a pretty small cave, but it was very well hidden. I wouldn't have found it had I not accidentally tumbled down the hill while running from a hive of Beedrill. I have been here for two days already, so I figured that I needed to get moving soon.

I walked to the back of the cave and curled up to take a nap. Since I'm a dark type, I shifted my sleeping times so I would be more awake at night. My old home never let me do this because my family and I were the only dark types on the whole hill. I drifted off to sleep and waited for night to come.

I woke up with a start. '_Something is wrong.'_ I realized. I jumped to my feet and went outside. I looked around, when I looked left, I came face to face with a Houndour.

It snarled at me, "What're ya doin' in my cave?" he growled.

I jumped back from him, "I didn't know it was yours, I thought it was just a random cave." I explained quickly. _'I have to get out of here.'_ I realized.

"You're gonna pay for that." he said, he lit his fangs on fire and started approaching me. I stepped back with every step he took towards me.

I turned quickly and used quick attack to run away from him. He realized what I was doing and ran faster to get me. Unfortunately, he was the quicker Pokemon and soon overtook me.

He jumped in front of me, fangs bared. I squeezed my eyes shut. _'Maybe it will hurt less if I just keep my eyes closed.'_ But the pain never came. I opened one eye, then the other. What I saw amazed me. A Gabite had Houndour in his claws above the ground so it couldn't move, but that's not what surprised me about. The Gabite was just like me, he was Shiny.

"Houndour, it's been awhile." he growled in Houndour's ear.

Houndour began to stutter, "G-G-Gabite, how's it goin'? It has been too long, maybe you should put me down so we can go get a drink at the stream or somethin'." he said.

Gabite tightened his grip, "I saw you rough up this poor Zorua," he nodded to me, "Apologize. Now."

This made Houndour bristle, "Why should I? She was in my cave just sleepin' around. She took it all like it was hers."

"I didn't take anything! It was bare when I found it!" I shouted. I hated his false accusations.

"The girl said she didn't do anything, apologize." Gabite said again.

"Fine, I'm sorry ya little brat." Houndour spit out.

Gabite set him down with that. "Now, before you go, I have one more thing to ask you." Gabite said. Houndour sighed, "What else do ya want?" "Do you know anything about the recent kidnappings and robberies? You too, Zorua, do you know anything?" Gabite asked us. All of a sudden, I went from victim to suspect, and that terrified me.

"N-n-no, I've been traveling around, I ran away. I don't know anything about this place." I answered.

Gabite looked down at me as if awaiting a different truth to come out of me. _'Oh my goodness, he doesn't believe me. Is he going to kill me?'_ Gabite finally broke the silence, "I believe you." A weight was lifted from the pit of my stomach with those words.

"How the heck can you believe her?" Houndour spat, "Zoruas are known liars and deceivers. She's not trustworthy. She even said she arrived when all of this weird stuff started happenin'!"

"Quiet, Houndour, you're a known thief and liar around here, you even used to be part of the notorious Dark Moon gang." Gabite responded.

Houndour seemed to shrink back with that. "That's in the past," he said, "I ain't like that anymore."

"Go home, I believe you, you're not a suspect anymore." Gabite said, he turned away refusing to look at him anymore.

Houndour walked a few steps, turned to look over his shoulder at Gabite, then ran until he was out of sight.

Gabite sat down on the ground and took a small notebook from the satchel I just realized he was wearing. He started scribbling down a few notes. As he wrote he asked, "So where are you from, kid?"

His question startled me, but I responded,

"The really big hill with lots of caves inside of it."

Gabite huffed, "That's a lot of towns around here, but whatever. You said you ran away, why?"

I looked at his deep blue scales as they shimmered in the moonlight. '_I wonder if he had the same problems that I did.'_ "All of the other kids my age bullied me because I was Shiny." I responded.

Gabite stopped writing and looked at me with a confused expression, "You were bullied for being Shiny?" I nodded, and he started laughing, "That's hilarious! I was treated as a god for my color. Every kid from where I lived wanted to be Shiny like me. We're a rarity, everyone wants to be us."

I let my mouth drop open, _'Why was I bullied then?'_ I tried to regain my bearings after hearing this shocking fact, "I was abused for that, bullied, beat up, called a demon, my own parents even thought I was a freak!"

Gabite stopped writing again, he had begun again while I was thinking. He shrugged then said, "Cultural differences, I guess." He closed the notebook again and got up. He started to walk away, but then turned and looked at me, "Kid, come with me, your ability and typing could help me with my investigation. You probably also need someone to take care of you. I mean, what are you, level nine or ten?"

I looked at him with a look of surprise, _'Why would I agree to travel with a stranger?_'

He shuffled his feet, "What, do you not have the ability illusion? Zouras are dark types, right?"

I remembered what my mom taught me, "Don't trust strange Pokemon, they could end up being bad and only cause you harm." She would tell me that every time before I went out.

Gabite began to get frustrated, "Look, I don't have all night, I'm a very busy detective."

I finally got rid of whatever thoughts that were hindering my speech, "My mom taught me not to trust strange Pokemon."

Gabite sighed, "Hey Riolu, get on out here."

A young Riolu about my age came out from the bushes. He gave me a small smile, "Hey there, I was like you, I ran away because the elders of my village claimed me to be a demon. They said my aura powers were too strong for a normal Pokemon. I ran away and found Gabite. He said he could help me. I trusted him and he was able helped me hone my powers. We've been working on a case and have been in need of a dark type to help us."

_'So that's why Gabite trusted me and Houndour's words. Riolu was telling him through telepathy if we were lying or not based on our auras.'_ I thought about what to do for a little bit, "I'll go with you, I guess." _'If I ever need to get out of here, I can always use illusion and run.'_

Gabite and Riolu smiled, "Great, let's get work." Gabite said.


	3. Chapter 3

"Again," Gabite said. It was dawn by now, and I was exhausted. I had teamed up with Gabite and Riolu a few days ago.

They briefed me on the situation, there has been a notorious gang of dark type Pokemon called the Dark Moon. They have been going around recently murdering and stealing. They were apparently notorious and violent. Where do I fit into all of this? I'm the bait. Gabite has figured out they will trust any dark type Pokemon that seems to be old enough. I'm obviously too young, but that's where illusion comes in. I will transform into a Liepard and infiltrate the gang's meeting. I will find out where their next strike is, then report to Gabite so he can get a police force.

I had informed Gabite that I can't transform into a Liepard, and he has been trying to train me to be able to. We had been working all night, I felt like I was going to collapse. "I can't Gabite! I'm exhausted." I cried.

Gabite sighed then scooped me up in his arms, "Fine, I'll let you take a rest. Go sleep for a while." He carried me back to the cave and placed me in my nest. I kept my eyes open long enough to see him prod Riolu awake so they could go train. I let myself fall into sleep.

I felt something poke my side, I turned over and snuggled down in my nest. I really did not want to wake up.

"Come on, Zorua, it's time to wake up. You really need to." It was Gabite, that made me not want to get up even more.

"Go away, I'm still sleepy." I muttered.

"I have some berries, do you want them?" he offered. I could smell the distinct smell of chesto berries. I turned over and reached for the berries with my mouth. I opened my eyes enough to see where the berries are. Gabite kept inching away so I would have to get out of bed.

"That's not funny, Gabite." I said, I finally got the strength to leap at the berries. I ate one and felt awake instantly. I ate the other four berries and trotted out of the cave completely free of drowsiness.

"That's the spirit. Want to try that illusion again?" he asked.

"Of course, I have to get this done some how." I said. I focussed all of my energy into transforming into a Liepard. I felt some change within me, but nothing drastic. I looked at my self, but nothing happened. I guess I had just imagined a change. I looked up at Gabite, he looked deep in concentration.

"Try a Purloin," he said, "You might be able to pull that off. It's about the same size as you."

I recalled that Purloin was the pre-evolution form of Liepard. I imagined it then transformed. I was successful. I looked up at Gabite in my new form. He smiled and nodded at my ability to do so.

"Now, can you try to get into the evolution mode? Think about evolving." he said.

"How am I supposed to do that?" I asked.

Gabite shrugged, "I don't know, just try. Imagine your body growing longer and, um, lankier...I guess"

I scrunched my face up and tried to think of a Purloin evolving into a Liepard. I could feel the change, it was as if my own body was changing. When I opened my eyes to try and change my physical form, I realized I had already done it. I was a Liepard. "Look, Gabite, look! I'm a Liepard!" My voice wasn't my own, it was older and more elegant sounding. When I leaped about, I did it with a certain grace that I never had before.

"Yeah, I see it kid. Nice job! Stay in that form and get used to it. Move around, try to learn the dynamics of it so you blend in naturally tonight." he said. He turned to walk towards the forest, "I'm going to go get the team of officers together for tonight's raid on the Dark Moon." he was out of sight by now, "See ya kid!"

I took Gabite's advice and walked around for a little bit. I attracted so much attention from the local Pokemon. Mothers would hide their young at the sight of me, other dark types whistled for my attention, I felt completely fabulous and powerful.

I walked around in this form fro pretty much the whole day and was getting pretty bored. That was when I saw Riolu wondering around gathering berries. _'I should pull a prank on him.' _

"Hey there, little one. How's it going?" I said in a menacing tone. I purred as I wrapped my tail around his neck.

I heard him gulp, he was terrified, "M-m-my mom told me not to talk to strangers."

I laughed, "But I'm no stranger. We're best friends." I put my nose right against his, "Aren't we?"

He started to run away, but with my new body I was able to keep chase very well. I leaped out in front of him and hissed with laughter. He drew back his arm and punched me right in the nose. I could feel my form waver and I was knocked back pretty hard.

"Wait, Zorua? Is that you?" Riolu said, he was pretty shocked at my sudden appearance.

"Of course it is! You knew I was going to be running around as a Liepard today, you should have known it was me." I yelled. I might have been to harsh since Riolu teared up.

"Well, excuse me! Illusions are extremely tough to see through, there was no way I could tell it was you." he yelled back. He ran back for his basket of berries and ran away. I pursued him.

_'I really should not have done that, I might have just lost one of my only friends.'_ I realized he was going back to the cave, so I slowed down. I could get back easily without following him. I sat down on the ground and focused on trying to transform into a Liepard again. I kept failing, so I went through Purloin to Liepard again.

I decided to go back to the cave and lay down in my nest. Riolu looked at me and jumped, but then realized who I was and ignored me. I curled up in my nest and looked at the wall for a little bit. I finally decided to get up and go to Riolu.

"If you're here to taunt me again, go away." he had his back turned to me as he talked.

"Look, I'm sorry Riolu. I won't do something like that again, I promise." I apologized. I felt awful for being so mean to one of my few friends.

Riolu turned his head to face me, his eyes burned with anger. "Don't do it again." he threatened. He stood up and walked towards me. He looked me in the eye then tilted his head slightly to the right. "Okay?"

I took a step back, he was making me feel nervous, "I promise." I whimpered.

Riolu nodded and went to the front of the cave. He put his hand on the wall and looked out. It was sunset by now, it was almost time to go. "Are you ready?" he asked.

I gulped, "As ready as I'll ever be."

He huffed, "Stereotypical answer for when you're nervous." He took a few steps then looked back at me, "Gabite told me to tell you that we're meeting him outside of the Dark Moon's base. I'll show you the way. He said that when you get to the hideout's entrance, they're going to ask you 'Why are you here?' You need to respond with 'I'm here on business?' Got it?" I nodded.

I didn't really trust him, especially after he punched me and gave me that cold talk a few moments ago. I only followed him and trusted what he said because I had to if I wanted to survive. We walked down the hill and through the forest in silence, the tension between us was so think you couldn't cut it with a knife.

When he finally talked, it seemed to make me feel worse, "You're going to face many dangers, are you ready?" I opened my mouth to respond, but he cut me off, "You better be because we're here."

The entrance was a hole in the ground, but then again, what wasn't out here? It seemed to be pitch black inside, but I could hear voices deep down in the caves. I sniffed the entrance, it smelled damp and there were many Pokemon scents hanging around it. I looked at Riolu and he nodded for me to go.

As I was about to pass the first turn, he yelled "I'll be waiting by the entrance. When you need help, just yell with your mind." I had no idea what that meant, but I knew he did. It infuriated me that he did that.

The cave twisted and turned back and forth through the darkness. I used my enhanced Liepard sense of smell to find my way around. Occasionally, there would be some light and I would be able to see footprints.

I could tell I was nearing an opening when a voice yelled at me, "What're ya doin' here, kid?"

I tensed up and tried to get a view of who it was. I looked at my body to see if I had transformed back into a Zorua when he said kid. I was still a Liepard, so I made it look like I was looking around for the voice instead of checking myself for a faulty trick.

"I'm here for the Dark Moon gang, I'd like to join." I answered. I hoped my voice didn't sound as nervous as I felt. Who knows, maybe illusion didn't just change your appearance. I shifted back and forth on my paws waiting for a response.

"Why are you here?" the voice asked, I realized that was the secret phrase to get in.

I felt some of my confidence return since I realized what came next. "I'm here on business." I smiled faintly as I heard a door click open in front of me.

I saw a Bisharp attending to the door and realized that was who I had been talking to, "Right this way, Miss Liepard." It sounded so fancy being called A Miss.

There were so many Pokemon hanging out inside the hideout. There was a bar being attended to by and Octillery. There were some Chandelure floating up near the ceiling providing an eerie candle light. There were tons of dark and ghost types milling around, getting drinks, and chit-chatting. I decided to try and join in, after all, that's why I was there. I need to get information on their next strike and take the information back to Gabite.

I joined in on conversations about family and everyday life, nothing seemed to be ordinary. That was until a Weavile jumped up on the stage near the side of the room. He motioned for everyone to be silent. _'Time to find out what's going on.'_ I realized.

Weavile cleared his throat and began to speak, "As you know, the police have recently caught onto our...activities," the pause made me shudder with fear, "But we won't let them know anything. I have come up with a great way to do that too."

The whole crowd perked up with anticipation. 'Better listen, this sounds good.' Weavile raised his hand for everyone to quiet down, "We already have the plan in motion, get a few innocent local kids kidnapped and hold them captive a ransom. That part is complete."

I saw someone heft a cage onto the stage, it had a small blue Pokemon inside that looked like it was shaking. It screamed out, "Zorua, run!" The voice chilled me to the bone, it was Riolu.I looked around at everyone else, they were all laughing and cheering at Riolu's capture.

Weavile continued, "Of course, we would like another child, but we'll have to wait until Zorua reveals herself. Anyways, the next part of the plan is to wait until the ransom is paid. When it is paid in full, assuming the police haven't attacked us and we've killed them, we kill the two kids and deliver them to the police. A threat that every time they try to attack us, the same will happen again and again!"

The crowd cheered at the plan. My heart pounded in my chest, _'I have to get out of here.'_ I realized, _'I have to find Gabite.'_ I pushed my way through the crowd inconspicuously until I was at the back. I walked towards the door as normally as I could.

I was about to slip out, when Weavile spotted me, "And where are you going, Miss Liepard? Leaving so soon? We haven't even found the little Zorua. We know she's here."

I had to make up something quickly, or else, "I'm not feeling to well right now, I really need to get home. I think I might have a cold or something." I coughed for effect.

Weavile smiled, "How awful, I've heard that illusion is quite a serious issue right now." A lump formed in my throat, I though I might cry because of how scared I was. He knew who I was, and that frightened me. This wasn't the time for playing tricks, I needed to get out of there fast! I felt something hit me hard on the back of my head, and the illusion faded. I staggered around a little bit, but ran for the door.

I leaped for the door and pushed it open. Gabite was standing there looking down at me, "How convenient," he said. Relief flooded trough me, I was saved. That's what I thought until he grabbed me with a strangle hold, "You ran right into my arms."

The crowd laughed, I couldn't comprehend what was going on. I turned to look at Gabite, except Gabite wasn't there. A Zoroark stood in his place and smiled evilly down at me. "You're such a cute little kid, too bad we need you for our plot, you genetic freak." he spat the last part at me.

I frantically tried to figure out where Gabite and the police were until it hit me. There was no police force or shiny Gabite. I had been set up.


	4. Chapter 4

All there was around me was darkness. I couldn't see anything, but I could hear a party going on outside, a very morbid part at that. Riolu and I had sat in the darkness for probably an hour or two in our cages in silence. _'I can't believe I fell for that. Riolu was right, illusions are hard to see through.'_

Riolu broke the silence, "I'm sorry, we got upset at each other before we started this mission. It's probably why I didn't hear anyone sneak up behind me, I was too caught up in our argument."

"It's my fault too," I admitted, "I shouldn't have used my ability to cause you harm. It got you upset and that's part of the reason we're here." I put my nose into my paws and closed my eyes. Tears started to roll down my cheeks.

"Please don't cry. Look, we really need to come up with a way to get out, and that's not going to happen if you're crying. I might have an idea." I had looked up to see what Riolu was doing. He was pulling at the bars of his cage, trying to get one loose I guessed.

"Okay, you're a fighting type, but you're not a strong fighting type. I highly doubt you'll be able to break on of the bars." I commented. The second I laid down again, I heard a snap from Riolu's direction. '_You have got to be kidding me, this guy is ridiculous._'

"What were you saying about me not being strong enough?" he taunted. He slipped through the bars and walked over to me with a laid back pace. '_He just has to show off, doesn't he_?'

"So, apologize for earlier and then I'll get you out." he offered.

"I already apologized, you idiot!" I yelled a little too loud. Voices were stirring outside the room we were locked in. "Riolu, hide." I commanded.

Light from the door hit the room illuminating everything. Riolu had dived for the cover of the shadows just quick enough and wasn't caught. I made an illusion of him sitting in his cage with the bar still intact. A Scragy entered the room.

"Nothin' is screwy here, ya idiot," it yelled into the hallway. "You're just hearing things."

I sighed as he exited the room and let the illusion fall. The door opened again and Scragy looked around. '_Shoot, this isn't good._'

Scragy looked around panicked and began to shout, "The blue one got loose, I have no idea where he is! Call Zoroark and Weavile." Riolu jumped out from the shadows and knocked Scragy to the ground, he was out cold the second he hit.

Riolu took the keys from Scragy's hand and unlocked my cage. "I'm sorry about wanting to make you apologize a second time, that was rude."

I huffed, "Yeah it was, but that doesn't really matter right now. We have to get out of here." I used illusion to turn us into two Scragys. "You go out there and knock out the other guard, then we'll find the way out."

Riolu nodded and exited the room. He said a few words to the other guard, then I heard him fall to the ground. Riolu looked back inside at me and nodded for me to follow.

"You're good at this." I complemented. We walked down the hallway as casual as possible. A few other Pokemon passed, but didn't pay us any attention.

"Yeah, I've done it before. Before Gabite, or Zoroark, found me, I was constantly getting in trouble and had to get myself out." he replied. "This really isn't anything new to me. I just made you get upset again so the guards would hear."

We came to a door and Riolu opened the door with the keys we stole from Scragy. We wandered up the caves until we were outside.

I started laughing hysterically, "Ahaha, we're not going to die, we made it!"

A strong hand gripped my paw, "Come on, we need to get moving," it was Riolu, "They're after us, we must keep going."

It was day time before we stopped moving, the whole night had passed. '_This is just over-kill on the whole running away thing.'_

Riolu finally stopped and found a cave for us, but I was too tired to even make it there. I just collapsed in the middle of the forest. I could hear footsteps and just assumed it was Riolu, boy was I wrong.

"Woah, a shiny Pokemon!" a voice exclaimed. "I better catch it while it's weak!"

The word '_catch_' made me perk up. '_A human,_' I realized. I tried to run away, but I felt something hit me and I dissolved. It was a weird feeling, like I was squeezing through a hole that was too small. The warmth of the energy I became filled me. It was kinda cozy inside wherever I was, so I didn't struggle against the pull.

"Alright, I caught a shiny Zorua!" the human exclaimed, what an obnoxious person. He walked around for a little bit longer then stopped again. I looked around to see where we were. I saw the opening to the cave that Riolu went it. He rushed out and charged the trainer. Another ball hit Riolu and he was caught.

"Some fighting type," I said out loud. I figured no one could hear me so there was no harm.

"Some dark type," Riolu responded. '_Of course he can hear me._'

"Well, at least we won't be hunted by anyone this way." I said, I was trying to look on the bright side of things.

"It's so cramped and tiny in here, I want out." Riolu said. I looked out and saw on of the balls on the trainer's belt wiggling, it was Riolu.

"Whatever, at least we can get big and strong this way, and no one will dare hurt us then." I said. '_This is going to be a long life.'_

* * *

Well, it was a long life indeed. Rilou and I trained hard under our new trainer, John. When we went to battle others, our opponents would gawk at me. I was scared of them at first, but later realized why. Trainers, unlike Pokemon, thought shiny Pokemon were something to be held with high regard. Everyone wanted us.

I evolved, and so did Riolu. We kept training until we were at the top. We sat up there for a long time, we were undefeated for months, of course, the rest of our team helped with that. I was still the star of the show because of my color. Sometimes, it's great to be a shiny.


End file.
